Departing June 9, Ryan Gilhuly and Dwight Smith will embark on a journey , attempting to pedal from the Atlantic Coast, New Haven, CT to the Pacific Coast, Santa Barbara, CA with no amenities, hoping for anything the west has to offer and to raise awareness and donations for the Connecticut Burns Care Foundation's Arthur C. Luf Children's Burn Camp.

A message from the Connecticut Burns Care Foundation

Ryan and Dwight hope to raise $10,000 to support the burn camp, which will host 70 children between the ages of 8 and 18. They are determined to reach the West Coast as a personal challenge as well as helping young burn survivors.

Started in 1991, the Arthur C. Luf Children's Burn Camp is located in northern Connecticut on 176 acres. Every summer, burn survivors come to the burn camp, which is a safe and fun environment that helps kids heal emotionally and physically. The Burn Camp is free to the children, who come primarily from the Northeast and some foreign counteries, but any burn survivor child anywhere is welcome. More than 70 adult counselors, primarily active and retired firefighters and burn unit nurses, occupational and physical therapists, child psychologists and even a doctor will serve as mentors for the week.

It's also our goal to promote burn awareness and fire prevention and education, which we do year around. We sponsor a burn survivor, burned in a car accident that involved speeding and drinking alcohol, who speaks to high school students throughout Connecticut. We also support the burn unit at Bridgeport Hospital, helping to purchase equipment.

Saturday, July 5, 2008

Chi-Town

This was a long-awaited visit for me...

Willis and Ginger Dickens, our friends from Valporaiso, Indiana, invited us into their house with open-arms and a full refrigerator. They insisted that we make ourselves at home and stay as long we wanted with them. They provided us with everything we needed and more. They even went shopping, specifically for Dwight and his vegan diet, they were awesome.

From the Dickens' house, we took off for the city. We left our bikes behind at their house and took a train into the city to avoid the hassle of navigating into the city by bicycle through the rough parts of South Chicago.

The Fireworks in Chicago

When we arrived into the city, we were greeted by my Uncle Tom. He took us on a water-taxi ride along the Chicago River and out onto Lake Michigan. It was a great way to see the city and take some pictures of perspectives you normally wouldn't have, especially at sunset.

After the water-taxi tour, we went out to eat at the Chicago Diner, a well-known vegan/vegetarian restaurant in Uptown, Chicago. Dwight was pumped and so was I. They had a huge selection of raw, organic, vegan/vegetarian dishes and drinks. We stayed at my Uncle's apartment for the night and we had our own couches to sleep on.

2 comments:

hey guys! just wanted to leave a little comment and wish you a belated happy 4th! I've really enjoyed reading about your journey and your photos tell a story of their own. Best wishes & safe travels as you continue on. Hit me up if you need a place to stay in Huntington Beach, San Francisco, or North Bay/wine country in California! Cheers - Monica M.

hey guys!looks like you are going to finish your adventure just before i begin my own! perfect timing!thanks for the updates, I love hearing about your adventures and living them vicariously through you!all the best -----------jess